Fractured Loyalties

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

Chapter 1

The moon shone bright. A lone Unicorn stood atop the hills of Canterlot, staring down upon its many slumbering citizens. A single drop fell from the unicorn’s cheek, splashing upon the grassy knoll of which he stood. He turned and trotted down the dirt path; a storm blew in from the east and poured down upon the unicorn’s orange and gold mane. Following the path into the direction of the storm, he came up to a large iron gate, in which he lugged open with his magic. Stepping through the open gate, he tread carefully across the pebble trail. Looking left and right he could see the gravestones of fallen ponies from years past. At the center of the complex lay a large monument, in which he stopped by and sank his head into his hooves.

He looked upon the names sketched into the granite plating.

'Twilight Sparkle' 3001-3025

Daughter
Sister
Wife
Mother

You will always be missed, You were the shining star in our eternal blackness.

'Aurora' 3025-3025
Daughter

Unborn to this world and taken from us. May your spirit live on.

The storm grew heavier. A bolt of lightning struck down upon one the graves, causing it to shatter. A loud clap of thunder followed thereafter but it didn't faze the old guard. It was almost symbolic to him in a way. It was a cold reminder of how easily he broke his promise to his love. Closing his eyes, he could still hear her voice, feel her embrace and the warmth of her aura on a winter’s night. It made his heart ache and his lungs tighten at the very thought of her.

Twilight giggled as she walked down the stairs, to see her White Knight stand in the doorway of their living room. She was wearing a blanket; covering her back and spreading down past her belly to her knees, a gift from her mother. She stood on the stairs just looking at him as he magically shut the door. He looked so regal in his black and blue armor.

“Welcome home, Ignis" She proclaimed, nuzzling under his neck, "Did you have a good day…err..I mean night guarding Luna?” Ignis returned the gesture before pulling her into a gentle kiss.

“It was a fair raid; we captured quite a few criminals tonight.” Ignis looked at Twilight’s belly. He felt foolish that he hadn’t realized she had been pregnant sooner. He placed his hoof on her stomach; he couldn’t believe that she was already 5 months along with their first foal. She’d been doing a lot since she told everypony at the lunch with the Princesses. He was starting to worry that she was overdoing it, and she could sense it.

“Ignis, I’m fine sweetheart, I swear," she calmly stated, "I’ve just been a little tired the last few days.” Twilight moved her hoof so that she was holding his. Rubbing her horn with his usually calmed him down, but this time was different. Ignis tugged on her to follow him upstairs to their living area of the library. Once they got up the steps he led Twilight over to their bedroom. Taking off his armor and setting it on the manikin, he laid down on the bed and patted the spot in front of him.

“Come on Twilight, join me please.” Ignis gave one of his cheeky grins, the same one he gave her on their wedding night. Twilight chuckled but gave him a cautious look as she laid down in front of him on the bed. Cuddling up close to him she felt safe and warm. She got comfortable and then changed angles so she was now on her side. Ignis took this time to place his forehoof over Twilight, and started to slowly rub her belly. Ignis heard her let out an approving sigh as he nuzzled against the side of her neck, continuing his motions.

“I thought this might help you relax, Twi." He said cautiously, "You need to take it easy, you’ve got something precious to care for right now.” She hated to admit it, but he was right. She could feel herself slowly drifting off, like nothing else mattered but what was going on right now.

“Hey, Ignis?” Twilight called, hearing a questionable moan from her love. “Will things always be like this once I have our foal?” Her eyes shut as she breathed slowly, feeling his hoof continue its circles on her swollen belly.

Ignis nodded slowly as he lifted his head and looked at his pregnant wife. “I promise I will never let anything happen to you and our foal as long as I’m alive. I’ll always be your White Knight in the darkness.”

Slowly, Ignis was drawn back into reality. Suddenly he could feel a cold chill descend upon his shoulder. Frightened, he snapped his head back, tears accumulating from his eyes.

“Twilight!” his breathing escalated at the sudden thought of Twilight being by his side. Looking up, he felt overly depressed upon the sudden realization that Twilight was not there. An orange earth pony lay in front of him.

“Oh…hey Applejack.”

“Hey Ignis. We figured ya might be out here.”

“Why did things have to turn out this way AJ?” Ignis turned his head, looking up at a statuette of Twilight atop the monument, rain dripping down. “I thought I could protect them both, but I couldn’t even save my own wife and child.” Ignis let out a sniffle as he started to dig his forehoof into the dirt.

AppleJack looked upon the broken stallion. Everything that he loved was gone.

“I don’t know, Ignis. Things like this just happen for no good reason.” She placed her hoof back on his shoulder. “Come on, it’ll do ya no good if ya catch a cold out here in the rain.” She watched Ignis simply nod his head standing and head towards the castle. The mare stood at the monument for a moment longer, staring at it. “We sure do miss ya, Sugarcube.” Applejack did her best to keep in the tears, but her emotions overcame her and a stream of tears struck down upon her. Wiping away the tears, AppleJack bid her farewells to Twilight and rushed back towards Ignis. Ignis created a barrier to shield them from rain.

The two entered into the streets of Canterlot, which was empty with the storm raging through the city. The rain ran off of the barrier, streaking as it travelled down the side of the bubble. Looking over at the orange mare he was glad to see her. If she hadn’t shown up he probably would’ve stayed there until he became deathly ill and followed Twilight into the void.

“Hey Applejack, did I ever tell you how Twilight and I first met?” Ignis kept transfixed upon AppleJack and saw her shake her head.

Deep inside the belly of Canterlot, a young colt was readily awaiting his first day of school.

“FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL! FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!" He ran around his home like a bat out of hell, his mother trying to subdue him long enough so that she could feed him. All of a sudden his limbs became lifeless, void of apparent movement. He could feel himself moving, but not under his own steam. Looking around, he could see a Sunglow aurora lining his body, pulling him back. His mother slowly placed his saddlebag on and gave him his lunch, she then opened the front door and let him loose on the world. As he raced on, his mother continued to stare into the distance, until he was long gone. Ignis arrived at gates and read the plaque outside:

'Welcome all to Magic Kindergarten, your first step towards imbuing your magical instincts'

Ignis stepped through into the courtyard and witnessed the plethora of students who were standing outside, laughing and playing. He went to each individual and introduced himself. It didn't take him long to attain a variety of different friends, many of which had various different strengths and weaknesses when it came to magic. It wasn’t long until Celestia herself showed up to introduce herself to the class. But something was different; she had a young lavender filly with her. Ignis was shocked to see Celestia enter with a filly; he was intrigued and wished to know more about this girl.

“Hey, who’s the filly with our teacher?” Ignis asked the blue unicorn filly next to him.

“From what I’ve heard, she’s the princess’s personal student, "The little filly responded.

Never before had anypony become a personal student of the Princess. He wanted nothing more than to go and introduce himself, but it had to wait until recess. The first part of class was really boring for Ignis, with Celestia talking about the essence of magic and how it was used. Ignis practically fell asleep on his desk. Once she dismissed class for recess, he breathed a sigh of relief. Once everypony was outside, he took to looking around for that same lavender filly he saw earlier. It wasn’t long before he found her sitting under a tree in the garden with her nose stuck in a book. “Hey, I’m Ignis, what’s your name?” Ignis stood there waiting for a reply, but the lavender filly kept reading her book. “HEY!” He stared at her and couldn’t stop thinking about what an egghead she was.

“Are you at least going to answer him Twi'ly?” Ignis looked up to see a young white stallion looking at the lavender filly. He couldn’t believe his eyes, the stallion in front of him was none other than Shining Armor. His eyes dilated and he froze, unsure of what to do. He was in the presence of his idol; Shining Armor was the youngest guard pony yet. Shining swatted at her ear “Twi'ly, at least say hi to him.”

She looked up, slightly confused. “Say hi to…oh…um hello there, my names Twilight Sparkle. Sorry I’ve got to keep my studies up for Princess Celestia.” Twilight looked up at Shining, “So you came to see me on a break, big brother?” she giggled as Ignis watched Shining mess with her mane. Leaving it a mess for her to fix, he mentioned only stopping real quick to check up on her. Ignis on the other hoof was dumbfounded; he couldn’t believe that this filly was the little sister to his idol. Without another word, Ignis took off; he had to get better at magic and study harder just like Twilight so he could be like Shining. Once the bell rang and everypony was heading back inside, Ignis was already in class reading through his textbook.

Ignis and Applejack strolled through the castle courtyards, the sound of the rain running off of the roof was prominent and loud. Approaching the giant oak doors, Ignis disengaged his protection bubble from the two. A combination of many colors coated the oak doors, pushing them open. The patrolling guards saluted their captain; however, he simply walked on past, without any response. AppleJack stopped and looked on as Ignis walked ahead, head hung low.

Entering the inner sanctum, Ignis was greeted by a mix of ominous gazes. All of Twilight’s best friends stood scattered, in various locations, inside the main reception, along with his fellow knights; a blue Unicorn mare, and a black pegasus. Looking from one pony to the next, he could feel a plethora of different emotions pouring in his direction. He began to drown in the sadness, anger and remorse that consumed him. Staring at him from behind the bar was Rainbow, her disgust radiated onto his very skin as he looked into her eyes. Her hatred for him, clawed at his very soul.

The doors slammed behind the stallion; looking back he could see an orange mare shaking herself dry from the storm. Rainbow slammed down her glass, waking up a tired mare at the counter. She trotted over towards Ignis and barged past him with a disgruntled glance, slapping the stallion in the face with her tail.

“I don’t know why you went to find him AJ" she growled, pointing her blood drenched hooves towards Ignis, "You should’ve just left him out there to rot.”

“Come on now, RD" AppleJack replied, walking past her friend, "You know that ain’t fair, Ignis has lost much also.” She placed a hoof on his shoulder as she walked past. She hadn’t liked his choice any more than the rest of them, but she understood the burden he was forced to endure.

Rainbow returned to her position behind the bar and downed her pint of cider.

“I don’t think we should associate with him." A white Unicorn turned from her position up at the counter and faced AppleJack who was comforting the distraught Pinkie Pie. "I mean really after everything that’s happened how would we look.” Rarity had been one of the hardest to deal with. She’d stopped even acknowledging that he even existed until right now. She hadn’t even come to share her sympathies for his loss.

Lifting herself up carefully with her injured wing, Fluttershy arose.

"How can you say such cruel things?" she softly spoke, her view directed towards the bar. "He’s been through enough. Besides we should be supportive of him and not be mean.” Ignis looked up as the injured pegasus floated towards him. She looked up at Ignis upon landing and gave a warm smile. It made him feel less pain knowing that it had been Fluttershy who’d been around to comfort him and help with his grief. The growing glares coming from her friends caught her in a frantic jitter.

Ignis gave Fluttershy a short hug to calm her nerves and wandered over towards a seating area. A rift between the four friends began to ensue. Rainbow Dash and Rarity shouting and yelling at AppleJack and Fluttershy about what should've been done.

Meanwhile Pinkie sat nearby, close enough to feel the ripple of negative energy fill her bubble of despair. Her mane, once like candy floss, lay in ruins. The curls of yesteryear vanished from existence and left behind lifeless stretches of pink clouding her way. The look of anguish shaded her face, in comparison it made Ignis look as though he was ecstatic. Overhearing the gluttony of abuse being thrown across the room, Pinkie slowly stood up. Sheepishly she spoke out, “Please, stop everypony.”

Her voice, so very fragile from the years of silence, cracked. Looking around, she could see the loathing and grief that her friends were slashing at each other. The feelings radiating from the boisterous ponies cut into her very soul. Feeling enough she lashed out at her friends, jumping in between the fighting. “Please stop!” Pinkie’s yell was enough to shock her friends into submission, her very voice stunned them, for after Twilight's death her very essence had diminished.

The arguing foursome looked at each other feeling depressed, sighing. AppleJack looked towards Pinkie, who hung her head in desolation. “Pinkie, it’s all right" she said with chuckle, "We’re just having a bit of a squabble.”

“No it’s not all right, nothings the same between us!" Pinkie Pie began to tear up. "We don’t talk anymore and never hang out. Not to mention that most of you keep forgetting one thing." She slumped down onto the ground and cried.

"And what is it we keep forgetting?" Rainbow asked rudely.

Looking up at the ignorant Pegasus, "What if it had been you put in Ignis’ position?" She stared at all the others and then fixed her focus on the forgotten stallion, whose head was slumped down into his hooves. "He didn’t ask nor want this to happen he…he just…” Her streams of tears turned into rivers in a matter of seconds. Fluttershy sensed the need to comfort her weeping friend and stepped forwards. She wrapped her wings around Pinkie and held her close whilst her tears soaked the yellow mare’s feathers.

“I just want Twilight back so everything can go back to the way it was.”

"We all do ,Pinkie," Fluttershy reassured her cohort.

Ignis was left alone for the majority of his presence. The silence allowed him to think about his duties, although recently he had been in deep thought in the theological concept of metaphysical time travel.

A rouge voice came from beyond his grasp, "Ignis Sica?" Ignis nodded. "The Princesses are ready to see you." The stallion stood up, acknowledging the statement. Heading towards the stairs, the stallion could hear the sounds of Pinkie's crying echo throughout the reception. Her friends tried hard to placate her but to no avail; her broken heart was too broken for simple petty talk to fix. He felt sorry for the mare, losing a friend can take its toll on a pony whose life revolved around making others smile.

Ignis advanced on, ascending the staircase towards the throne room. Arriving at the celestial gateway, the stallion heard a familiar voice buzz through the air.

"Hold on now sugar. You ain't headin' in there without me." Looking back he saw a glimpse of AppleJack climb the steps behind him.

"But what about Pinkie?" He asked, puzzled.

"The others can tend to her. After all, you're gonna need more help in there." She explained. The stallion gave out a reluctant sigh, as he knew there was no changing that pony’s mind. Both of the ponies proceeded to push open the large doors to Celestia’s throne room, being greeted by the eyes of the Royal Sisters; Luna and Celestia. However to Ignis' surprise, there were the one set of eyes that he’d never wanted to see again after what had occurred.

Standing next to Princess Celestia was a white stallion with a blue mane, wearing the royal guard armor. On the front was none other than his mark; a shield with a large star in the center and three small stars above it. Lastly were the blue eyes, those same eyes that stared at him when he disagreed with his choice. Those eyes brought the most pain to Ignis like he had no heart at all and was left a shell of his former self. Ignis kept his head lowered as he heard the doors close behind him as AppleJack, Star Seeker and Frost Shard joined him. Slowly, all three of his companions dissipated around the large, majestic room as Ignis walked closer to the Princesses. AppleJack gave him a slight smile and a wink, which boosted his confidence and his footwork, sped up.

Ignis bowed down before his Princess and saw Shining glaring at him from yonder. The rage he had for Ignis was unfathomable. He hated everything the stallion was or stood for, having lost his little sister and niece because of him. Shining walked over to him and gave him a shove.

“You still can’t look at me, can you?” Shining watched Ignis clench his eyes shut. Giving Ignis another shove, Shining demanded that he look at him. "Come on. Look at me!" Ignis looked at Shining. His malic filled eyes met the dark blue void of his. The urge to use dark magic on Ignis was very tempting. “You’re pathetic you know that? Some captain…” A stray green blast landed before Shining's forelegs, which made him jump.

“That’s ENOUGH!”

Looking to his left, Shining spotted the origin of the blast. A blue unicorn mare stood, glaring at him with evil intent, her horn still red hot from her last blast. Her mane was a mix of baby and sky blue. She was one of Luna's personal bodyguards alongside that of Ignis and Star Seeker. Her red eyes, hot enough to scorch through the essence of life itself, were fixed upon one pony in particular.

“I won’t stand by and let you disgrace my Captain any longer!" She roared, stamping her hooves upon the mosaic flooring. "He did what he had to for Equestria; if he hadn’t we’d be at war right now.” She saw Shining shoot a glare back at her, but his petty looks did not make her falter.

Shining Armour paced the throne room vigorously, staring at Ignis and his associate. “So you're saying that my little sister's death was a good thing?" He questioned, "Because I don’t see any good in THAT!” His anger against Ignis had grown exponentially over the years, so much that he contemplated murder. As the darkness grew in his heart, his horn began to glow dark green. Noticing his current state, Princess Cadence rushed over to her husband to try and calm him down.

“No, Shining Armour , what I’m saying is that our captain had to make a choice and he had to do what was right for Equestria." The mare explained, "Now, here is a theological question for you. Would you condemn your wife and daughter to save Twilight had you been put in his hooves?” She stared at Shining awaiting a response as tears began to trickle down her cheeks. The very question burned deep into Shining's mind, he couldn't weigh up the possibilities, how could he choose between the mares that mattered most to him. Staring back at the mare he was shocked to see her steely composure faltering. “She was one of my best friends. Don’t think that just because I’m a knight that I don’t see the dilemma that…”

“That’s enough, Frost Shard.” Ignis said calmly cutting her off.

“No, captain, it’s not. He…”

“Frost enough, I’m not your captain anymore.” Ignis shot a fiery gaze, which caused her heart to melt. Ignis turned from his fellow guard and wandered over towards one of the window panes, passing Shining along the way.

“Stay out of this, Frost. Like he said, he’s not your captain anymore." Shining sniggered, "Besides, he wasn’t worthy of protecting Twi'ly.” Ignis stopped in his tracks upon hearing Shining dishonoring him, the words struck his soul with the force of one thousand knives. “I don’t know what Twi'ly saw in you Ignis, but she was wrong to marry you.” Shining could hear a quiet growl come from behind him, turning he saw Ignis launch himself in his direction. The stallions clashed in an ever ensuing battle, orange and purple magic crossed and sparked above their heads. Shining had left his flank exposed which gave Ignis the opportune time to strike. He fired a beam of lightning, which knocked Shining down. Ignis moved over to the fallen stallion and knelt at his side.

“Oh how the mighty have fallen." Ignis looked upon the fallen captain, "You may feel this way towards me all you want Shining. I deserve it. But I won’t have you disgrace how much Twilight meant to me!” He let out his hoof to help Shining up, to which he pushed away.

"You may have given up on Twilight, Shining!" Ignis shouted, as the stallion trotted away. "I sure as hell haven't!"

Author's Note

This is the first chapter in the story. This is a collab with my friend ParsleyParsnips. Please read and enjoy, constructive criticism is welcome. More chapters coming soon.

Chapter 2

Shining stood up, his body sore from the blast he’d taken from Ignis. He wasn’t about to be put down like some Timberwolf. He growled, launching a blast of purple magic, hitting Ignis on his side. The former knight was sent spinning to the ground. Coughing, Ignis slowly began to stand as a sharp pain entered his side. The pain plunged through his body, as sharp as a sword sweeping through his chest. The stallion's injuries began to overcome his ever depleting spirit as he struggled to lift himself off the cold floor. Shining trotted over, forcing his hoof upon Ignis’ neck.

“I haven’t given up on Twi'ly either. I just doubt you have the ability to do anything to make this right.” Shining menaced, digging his hoof into Ignis’ neck further. The fallen stallion elicited a growl of pain, blood pouring from his wounds. A wicked grin elongated across Shining's face whilst his eyes started to gleam a tint of green. “You think I’ve fallen? You’re the one who choose this fate. You’re the reason Twi'ly and my little niece is dead!” Shining pressed harder and harder into Ignis’ neck.

Frost had seen enough. She gritted her teeth and charged towards the battle. However she was suddenly stopped mid-track.

“Don’t do it Frost. This is their fight they have to settle this.” Star Seeker said.

Frost opened her mouth to object, however the ever glaring Star quickly silenced any form of answer from the mare.
“Look at Applejack and the Princesses. All three of them want to do something but won’t because this has been boiling up till now. I wouldn’t want to get involved unless it’s absolutely needed.”

Star continued to block Frosts passage, his black wings fully extended in preparation to swat Frost back if she tried to pass. With a sodden “Fine” she relented and held her ground. Looking at the others in the throne room, Frost could see that everypony else had the same mindset she did.

“Heh, just look at you Ignis. You’re so weak and pathetic now. You aren’t even worth fighting.” Shining boomed. Ignis struggled to lift his head, he noticed Shining's eyes clouding over with a green mist. He knew exactly what was coming and had been counting on it.

Shining closed his eyes and focused, loosening his grip upon Ignis' neck. Ignis felt the stallion's ice cold hooves lift from their grip; he realized his chance to kick Shining right in the gut. He lifted his back legs, aiming them towards his assaulter's lower torso. He applied such force into his kick that he sent Shining crashing upon the ground. The stallion skidded across the flooring, resting beneath a statue of Twilight which fuelled his anger further.

Shining quickly recovered his composure, brushing off the dirt residue lining his coat. His eyes continued to darken as he sent blasts of magic in Ignis' direction. He watched as the former knight continuing pouncing around, dodging and countering. Shining's anger flowed viciously throughout the stallion's body. All of Ignis’ moving wasn’t making it easy to hit him. Shining was becoming infuriated, and a beam of purple magic launched from his horn. Ignis countered with a beam of his own, sparks flying as orange and purple clashed.

“What’s wrong Ignis you used to be so strong? What happened to all of that magical prowess that you had like my SISTER!” Shining yelled.

Ignis grit his teeth, trying hard to hold his position as Shining’s magic began to increase in intensity, pushing him back.
What’s going on? My magic is so weak compared to his? Ignis thought.

The thought travelled endlessly throughout Ignis' brain but he just couldn’t explain why his magic was so weak compared to that of his rival. He could feel his hooves sliding across the castle floor. Looking toward Shining, he noticed that his left eye had transformed further. A red ring began to form around his iris, imbuing the enraged stallion with magnified power.

Shining unleashed a second blast wave which tore through Ignis' defensive beam. The blast wave reached Ignis' horn, knocking him backwards into the wall with a loud thud. He attempted to lift his himself up, noticing one of the many stained glass windows. The depiction of the six element users surrounding the colored gems in the center. Ignis started coughing hard. Slowly getting back to his hooves he looked down and could see a blood trail soaking into the once gracious flooring. Ignis could feel that he now had some cracked and possibly broken ribs.

Shining grinned wickedly. “You’ve lost your will to fight. So your magic is nothing compared to mine now.”

Ignis’ eyes widened. It all made sense, when Twilight was with him he never backed down from anything. Since her death he hadn’t had the will to continue enhancing his magic or learning any new spells. But there was one thing he knew for sure, and that was that he wasn’t going to be beaten down by Shining Armor.

Ignis snorted, sparks beginning to form around his horn. He lifted his head and glared upon Shining with sollom intent, unleashing the electric field upon him. Shining anticipated Ignis’ attack and formed a spherical field around himself. Ignis fired shot after shot of pure electric current, the attacks far from hitting home. However one bolt locked onto Shining but was quickly cascaded away by the closing field around the stallion. The lightning bolt was sent into the opposite direction, back to its master, however Ignis quickly dodged it as it struck dead upon the marble wall behind him.

Ignis looked around to find Shining but he was nowhere to be found. Looking behind him he could see the stained glass window, depicting his former friend’s first encounter with the elements of harmony. Shining suddenly appeared to the stallions left, having teleported to close the distance. The pain in Ignis’ chest caused him to flinch leaving him open for attack. Shining released a magic pulse blasting Ignis with it.

The sheer force of the blast knocked Ignis backwards, smashing through the window. The glass shattered upon impact. Falling, the shards, once depicting an historic occasion, encircled the badly injured stallion. The fragments glinted Ignis’ eye, showing him inklings of past events surrounding his encounters with the elemental ponies. Tears trickled down his cheek, his mind paralyzed from his impending return to reality. He crashed down upon the sodden below with a mighty thump, coming to a halt. Ignis began to cough, blood spluttering from the wide open gashes across his chest. His body ached, rain pattering against his wounds, seeping in and mixing with his blood.

Ignis pushed upon his fore legs, slowly lifting himself from the ground. Flipping himself over he looked upwards, noticing the shattered window in which he passed. Shining stood in the frame, looking down. Ignis let a small chuckle as Shining disappeared from sight. Exhausted he slowly closed his eyes.

He mixed a paralyzing spell in with the pulse attack. Heh it’s not like it matters now my body wouldn’t be able to take much more anyway. Looks like I’ll be joining you soon Twilight.

Ignis gently opened his eyes, looking up to see Shining Armor towering over him. A flash of lightning creating a black silhouette around him, his eyes glaring viciously into Ignis’. An evil smile stretched across his face. His left eye glinted a deep shade of green, the pupil a whirlpool of blood. Shining squinted his eyes and jeered forwards. Streams of black and green energy seeped from his horn forming an orb on its tip. The orb overflowed with dark energy, discharging sparks upwards.

“And you say I’ve fallen.” Ignis snarled. Shining’s dark aura intensified upon hearing Ignis’ slight remark, the orb growing in size. The stallion was ready to unleash hell’s fury upon the helpless one lying before him.

Shining lifted his horn, unleashing multiple bursts of dark energy. The energy surged through the air drawing closer to the stallion lying in the mist. Ignis watched as his life flashed before his eyes, awaiting his end.

A sudden explosion of light and darkness lit up between the two stallions. The mixture of opposing natures slowly began to settle.

Out of the darkness stepped Celestia, her face filled with contempt towards Shining’s actions. Reeling backwards she lifted her hooves and smashing them swiftly upon the ground, her horn lit up dispelling the evil surge.

Luna stepped from the blinding light facing Ignis. She looked upon the injured unicorn with admiration and sympathy. To stand up for what you believe in is the makings of a true captain. Ignis struggled to lift his head.

“Princess?” He murmured.

“Shh. Quiet now child. You need your rest.” Luna responded. “Now this may sting.” The Princess began to administer a fair amount of magical antiseptics throughout Ignis’ body. The magic seeped into his wounds causing him to let out an obstreperous howl, which echoed through the castle. Luna smiled as her captains’ injuries began to heal. She turned to face Shining, her smile stricken from her face.

The two princesses looked upon their once admirable and righteous captain. Their glares digging into his soul. Cadence began to make her way down towards her husband.

“That’s enough Shining Armor. Ignis is in no fit state to continue this battle right now. You’ve proved your point.” Celestia growled, stomping her hoof into the muddy ground. The mud, staining her pearl white coat.

“No it’s not! He needs to die for what he did to Twilight! That’s the only way I’ll be satisfied!” Shining hissed, the malice clear in his voice. The evil intent in his eye clear was enough. Unable to stand for such treachery Shining whipped his head around in a sodden defeat. Shining began to trot from the two princesses’, who safeguarded Ignis from his grasp. His eyes soon caught that of his wife Cadence, who had landed in wait. Even with the rain still pouring Shining could see that Cadence was crying.

Shining looked into Cadence's eyes, his very soul being swallowed within the pools.

“Please Shining, stop this.” Cadence placed her horn upon Shining’s and he could see within himself and what he had become. Shining objected to the claims, the conflict inside his mind growing. One side, filled with envy and hatred condemning the stallion to a life of misery and bitter vengeance towards who caused him the most grief. Ignis. The other side, filled with reason and remorse for the actions in which he had performed.

“No Shining, it’s not. Just look at what you’ve become and what you did. I doubt you would ever want Twilight to see you like this.”

Turning from Cadence, Shining could see Ignis still lying upon the ground. He was surrounded by not only Luna but his former knights. Applejack trotted past Shining and glared in his direction before resting at Ignis’ side. Off to his right he noticed the rest of Twilight's friends; Rainbow Dash, yelling for him to finish Ignis in her inebriated state. Pinkie and Fluttershy were pleading for him to stop, while Rarity just simply watched the show. Shining didn’t know what to do. He looked down, catching his reflection in a pool of water. Another flash of lightning showed him what he’d failed to see any other time. The slow downfall he would endlessly trek were he to continue. Another vision followed in which he saw Twi'ly in the water her eyes shedding tears, asking him why he’d let the darkness in.

“By Celestia what have I done Cadence!?” Shining whimpered, tears streaming down his cheeks. The rain pattered around the couple. Cadence whipped away Shining’s tears and comforted him. Their horns locked and a cloud of azure enveloped around them, filling Shining with the princess’ love. The overabundance of love assisted Shining’s reason overcome his hatred and slowly his returned to normal.

Ignis slowly lifted himself from the muddy ground, knocking away Star’s hoof in his attempt to help him up. Ignis didn’t look at anypony, he simply limped inside and headed towards his chambers, water and blood staining the halls.

Ignis pushed open the large, wooden doors to his abode in the castle. Since Twilight’s death he’d taken up residence at the castle, the Library in Ponyville holding too many scars. Inside was the only friend he could count on anymore, on the couch lay a tall purple dragon reading a book and consuming a variety of gems in the process. Spike had matured during the time following Twilight’s death, however his honor never wavered. Ignis enjoyed his company, reminding him of the old days and his boundless knowledge of libraries helps him find most books he needs to read for his research since then.

“Holy hayseeds Ignis, what happened to you?” Spike gasped.

“Shining Armor…cough…was with the…Princesses. We got into a big fight. As you can…see…cough…I lost.” Ignis clutched at his chest, the magnitude of pain flowing through his body had intensified since the fight. He found it harder to breathe due to a few cracked ribs blocking his airways, and his unhealed cuts lay sore from the embedded glass which lay dormant. Ignis felt a cold snap across his side, slowly spike helped Ignis into his bedroom and onto his bed.

“Spike can you grab the first aid kit…” Ignis had to stop to catch his breath. Spike nodded and headed towards the bathroom to get the first aid kit. Ignis smiled, he was lucky to have that young dragon with him still. If it hadn’t been for Spike, Ignis would’ve probably given up on everything a long time ago. It was only through Spikes determination and pressuring to want to fix everything that happened that got Ignis going. Ignis chuckled, hearing Spike curse as he rummaged through things, obviously he’d misplaced the first aid kit. Taking a moment to relax, Ignis looked at the lone picture of him and Twilight. He couldn’t help but think back to when he first took Twilight out on a date.

Ignis stood outside the Sparkle house admiring the size of it. This was a big night for him. He wore a simple black button up dress jacket, specially made with the Canterlot guard symbol embodied upon the collar. He gave three quick knocks on the front door. The door opened revealing the one and only Nightlight.

“Ah Ignis it’s good to see you again, please come in.” Ignis entered the house he was just as familiar with as his own. Sitting down in the living room he wasn’t surprised when he saw Shining Armor and Nightlight sit down across from him. “So you and Twilight are going beyond just being friends?”

“Yes sir I’ve been thinking about it for a while. And well she’s so kind and beautiful I couldn’t keep my feelings hidden anymore. I’m just glad that she felt the same way about me.” A smile on Ignis’ face. Panic showed when he saw Nightlight raise an eyebrow as if to ask what would’ve happened had Twilight said no.

“So what do you plan on doing tonight?” Nightlight inquired. Shining gave Ignis a questionable stare. The look pierced Ignis’ mind, making him wonder what Shining was either going to say or wanting to say. The intensity of the stare caused Ignis to swallow a lump in his throat before answering. Shining Armor scared Ignis almost as much as Nightlight did with the raised eyebrow. He had to be very careful about how he handled situations with Twilight, since Shining was his boss in the royal guard.

“Well I thought I’d take her dancing.” The response caught both of them by surprise. Both of them were apparently waiting for him to say the movies to possibly make some moves on Twilight. Although Ignis would be dancing with Twilight it was more than acceptable, but still warranted more questioning. Ignis was then bombarded with multiple questions from Shining. While upstairs Twilight was finishing getting ready for their first night together.

“Oh what am I going to where!? No, no, no, nnooo!!!” Twilight yelled as she threw outfit after outfit on the floor. Cadence looking on as the lavender mare was letting her paranoia get the better of her. Different colors littered the floor along with a baby dragon covered in clothes, chewing on one of the sleeves. Twilight’s room now looked like a rainbow had just exploded in her room.

“Twilight calm down. I’m sure that Ignis will find you beautiful no matter what you wear.” Cadence giggled watching her favorite filly that she used to foal sit panic about something so new to her. Cadence continued to giggle but she knew what Twilight was going through, Cadence had been the same way the first night she went out with Shining Armor.

Both of them turned as they heard laughter coming from the hallway. Entering Twilight’s room was her mother, Galaxy. The pale grey mare walked into Twilight’s room her purple and white mane a perfect contrast to her pale grey coat. Her magic carrying a thin box, she set it down on Twilight’s cloth covered bed.

“Here Twilight try this.” Twilight opened the box revealing a yellow dress. Twilight’s eyes lit up. It was something simple yet made her stand out, she loved it. “This was my favorite dress as a young filly, so I thought you should have it sweetheart.” Galaxy watched her daughters eyes light up with joy. She had no doubt that Twilight would be wearing that a lot and it would need refitting and resizing down the road. But for now the dress would fit Twilight perfectly, with maybe just a little room to grow into.

“Oh thank you mom. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!” Twilight jumped up and down, putting the dress on in a quick manner. Twilight looked at herself in her mirror loving what she was seeing, but something was missing. Suddenly she felt her mane being pulled up and saw that it was cloaked in Cadences magic. A yellow ribbon floated over and was tied into her mane, giving her a pony tail.

“There I think you’re all set now Twilight.” Cadence giggled. Cadence and Twilight’s mom both got big hugs from her before she was heading down the stairs. Ignis turned around just in time to see Twilight enter the living room after he’d just been given the third degree like a criminal. Ignis couldn’t believe his eyes. Before him stood the young filly he’d known since they were young, now a young teen like him. She was the most beautiful pony he’d ever seen in his life. He stood up and walked over to her meeting her eyes. It was like they were staring into each other’s soul and everypony could sense it.

“You…um…you look really beautiful Twilight.” Ignis felt his cheeks get a little red, but noticed that Twilight’s did as well.

Twilight thanked him. Ignis used his magic to open the front door letting Twilight go first.

“You kids have a fun night.” Galaxy called, waving to both Ignis and Twilight.

Ignis snapped out of his transfixed state and returned to reality, letting out a light chuckle. Having to teach Twilight how to dance was one of the best parts of the night, well besides getting to slow dance with her and giving her a kiss at the door. Ignis could feel tears starting to run down his cheeks.

Looking off to his left he could see his guard armor, sapphire colored with black trim. The joints started to wear due to abandonment after Twilight’s death. It was a somber reminder of what he’d given up to join the Royal Guard. Tears continuously ran down his cheeks remembering how he crushed Twilight’s feelings when he chose to join Celestia’s guard over being with her.

Spike returned with the first aid kit, and proceeded to treat the smaller wounds. Ignis grumbled and yelped with each bandage wrapped around a cut. The worst part being his ribs was wrapped up as gently as Spike could.

“Thanks Spike. You’re a great friend to have around, plus if it weren’t for you I doubt I’d be here right now.” He saw the teen dragon blush and scratch behind his ear on recognition. “You did manage to get all the books I asked for from the library here right?”

“Yeah it wasn’t easy though. I had to avoid some guards getting into the restricted section, but I did find them all.” Spike pointed to a small stack of books, each one having Starswirl The Bearded’s name on the spine. Ignis’ aura covered the books separating them into smaller stacks before levitating book by book, glancing over each. Spike was still amazed at how fast Ignis could read through a single book, he was almost as fast as Twilight was when she read.

Spike could see the frustration building on Ignis’ face, he definitely wasn’t finding the answers that he wanted in the books. Before long Ignis was on the last book of the pile, reading through fast but carefully too. Ignis found nothing in the last book and threw it against the stacked books, hard. Spike could feel the vibration from the impact. The books went toppling into a mess that would’ve freaked Twilight out had she still been alive.

“Gah! None of them Spike! None of them have the info that I need!” Ignis shouted. He saw Spike wince when he yelled, causing the teen dragon to look away from Ignis. Ignis buried his head in the pillows of his bed, growling in frustration. Ignis raised his head, using his magic he opened the drawer in his nightstand pulling out an ornate ring. He carefully played with it between his hooves, his wedding ring was something very special to him. Ignis stared at the ring longer than anypony should, becoming transfixed. The memories of how the two become one began to flow through his mind.

Ignis paced around the small room. Sweat ran down his forehead, his heart beating fast. His fellow knights chuckled; they continued to watch him pace around the room. Ignis was wearing a more royal version of knights clothing for this ceremony. It was a dark blue jacket with a black belt that wrapped around. Luna’s symbol covered his chest in a shield. The outfit was a gift to him from Luna upon hearing that Twilight and he were getting married.

“Captain don’t be so nervous. Everything will go just as it should. Besides we wouldn’t be here if she didn’t love you.” Frost smiled, holding back a fit of laughter. Frost never got to see Ignis panic like this. When on a mission Ignis was always so serious about getting it completed.

“Yeah I know Frost. Thanks.” Frost’s reassurance made Ignis feel more at ease. Ignis could see the uneasiness that Star was showing. “Heh you look a little pale there Star. You nervous? You’ll be dancing with RD for the first time right?” Ignis chuckled, seeing Star blush. Star had the biggest crush on Rainbow Dash, but could never tell her how he felt. The door to Ignis’ room opened and Shining stepped in wearing the same outfit he had on when he got married.

“Hey big man, you’re up.” Shining smiled. “You excited to be getting married today?” Shining got his response when he saw Ignis’ knees shaking. A sly smile was painted across Shining’s face seeing Ignis so nervous. The stallion could topple an Ursa Major, but when it came to Twilight, he was as helpless as an apple on apple bucking season. Ignis took a deep breath before following Shining out and towards the garden to join Princess Celestia. Frost and Star chuckled at Ignis’ panicked state. The last member of their team Solar was standing guard outside the royal garden along with members of the royal guard.

The alters arch was covered in multicolored flowers, plenty of room for both sides of the family. Ignis exited the castle and walked to his spot for the wedding. He took a moment to look at the garden. He was thoroughly impressed at what Rarity had been able to do along with making the dresses for Twilight and the others. Fluttershy’s birds were on a stand in the back ready to sing once Twilight was to enter. Ignis looked out into the group of family and friends that were attending. He could see his parents, his mother crying and his father giving him a wink as if trying to say:

“You caught yourself a fine mare son.”

It only made Ignis chuckle. To the right were all of Twilights friends and family that had come to join the ceremony. Ignis easily spotted the Sparkles in the front row. Ignis looked over and could see Twilight’s best friends in their bridesmaid’s dresses, and Cadence picked to be Twilight’s mare of honor. To Ignis’ left were his fellow guards, his grooms ponies all dawned in their armor, and Shining Armor his best pony for this event. Behind Ignis was the one pony he’d hoped would make an appearance, Princess Luna. She stood next to her big sister dressed in her traditional royal clothes.

The birds began to sing, signaling the entrance of the bride. The doors opened to Scootaloo, AppleBloom and Sweetie Belle carrying flower baskets. They bounced down the path dropping flower peddles on the grass before stopping just before the alter.

Then came the pony that he’d been waiting to see come through the doors. Twilight wore a pearl white dress and gown that flowed smoothly on the grass. She had a veil on with purple and pink flowers that held the veil in place. Rarity had even managed to put Twilight’s cutie mark on the chest piece of the dress. Twilight made it to the alter and looked at Ignis blushing slightly. They both looked at Celestia as she started the ceremony.

“Mares and Gentle colts. We are gathered here today to join these two ponies together for a lifetime journey as husband and wife.” Celestia looked around, she could see the parents of both ponies in tears of joy. The ceremony continued like normal everypony listening to Celestia talk. Then the time came that Ignis had feared the most. “Twilight. Ignis wanted to say something special to you on this special day.” Everypony looked on as Ignis swallowed a lump in his throat. Twilight on the other hoof was excited. Her heart was pounding the hardest in all her life.

“Twilight you know how much I love you right?” Ignis watched Twilight nod her head. “I promise that no matter what our new life together brings. I’ll always love you with all my heart and protect you until both of us part from this world.” Ignis took one of Twilight’s hooves with his. “I will forever love you and cherish you Twilight.” Ignis’ words brought tears to Twilight’s eyes. Ignis had once told her that it was her love for him that made his magic so strong. With his words, it only deepened her love for him and her belief that what he said was true.

“Would the ring bearer please present the rings.” Celestia looked to Spike. Spike held up a pillow containing both rings. Celestia coated both rings in magic levitating them to their respective recipients. One became cloaked in a purple aura and the other cloaked in an orange aura. Ignis and Twilight placed the rings over each other’s horns smiling. “I now pronounce you Mare and Gentle colt. You may kiss the bride Ignis.” Ignis pulled Twilight into a deep and loving kiss, the families and friends cheering and crying in joy. Ignis looked into Twilights eyes once they broke their kiss. Touching horns they saw each other blushing with joy and excitement. They were one now and neither of them would have it any other way.

Ignis continued to fiddle with the ring that once belonged to his wife. An inscription on the underside read I am your shield, he scoffed at that statement. “With what I did, that statement has no meaning now.” Ignis lowered the ring back into the drawer and shut it.

“Hey Ignis what’s with this weird marking on the first page of this book?” Spike held up one of the many books that he’d gotten from the restricted section of the castle library. Ignis jerked and saw the mark, levitating the book over he quickly started studying the tome. Spike looked over the pile of dusty tomes which lay before him. Page by page, book by book, the dragon flicked looking for any other clues. “Hey Ignis this one’s got a strange marking on the first page as well. But this one’s different from the other one from that book.” Ignis continuously looked over both of the strange symbols inked into the pages. A slight smirk widened across his the stallion’s face.

“Spike you’re a genius!” Ignis exclaimed, a bewildered Spike stood before him. The stallion rushed around the room bashing piles of books over. “Quickly tear out all of the first pages of each book that has a marking on it.” Spike continued to stand, as if dazed. He had no clue what Ignis was up to but proceeded to do as he was asked. The young dragon pushed aside the assortment of books, searching through volumes and tomes alike.

Ignis looked upon the vast knowledge that lay before him. Only he could comprehend how to unlock their secrets, they all had a distinct look to them.

The stallion looked upon the books and noticed some sort of pattern. He began to place the dozen pages, he had ripped out, down in front of him. He examined each of the markings carefully and placed eight of the twelve into a spiral shape, whilst the remaining four were placed in a diamond formation around the center.

Ignis placed the last piece of the puzzle upon the ground. Both he and Spike looked in amazement at what they had discovered. The symbols, emblazoned upon the pages grew in size and formed that of a blue and white vortex inside a star.

Ignis looked inside himself and focused his magic. Letting out a spark of energy the pages began to shake uncontrollably, the ink lifted itself from the pages and morphed into a book, which lay at the center of the pages. The book was embroidered with different markings, the former knight levitated it over to himself and began to read through it easily finding that which he was after. His eyes lit up with ecstasy and let out a booming cheer.

The princess of Love was trotting through the castle hallways when she heard an echoing shout resonating from Ignis’ chambers. She walked into the stallion’s room to see the stallion and his dragon assistant rejoicing in their discovery. Ignis stood before a chalkboard which had been defaced with a plethora of different spells and incantations. Upon the noticing the princess staring at them, they felt fairly awkward.

“Ignis what’s going on in here? And what’s with the giant mess of books?” Cadence looked around, her mind boggled by the mess in the room. It would’ve sent Twilight’s head spinning and caused her to go into a fit of rage from it. Ignis placed the chalk down on the rail, relieved with his findings. Cadence looked deep into Ignis’ eyes and could see that the fire had been relit within his spirit.

“We found a way to fix everything Cadence. But we’re going to need everyponies help to make this work. Please inform everypony and have them meet us in the main auditorium.” Cadence’s eyes widened. She wasn’t about to ask any questions, if it meant bringing Twilight back she was all for it. Not hesitating for a moment, Cadence ran out of the room, to find Shining and the others. The two friends followed suite, heading for the Hall of Harmony.

“Do you really think this spell will be able to fix this mess?” Spike questioned.

“I have no doubt in mind. Either that or cause a rip in all of reality, causing worldwide destruction.” Spike stopped in his tracks, shaking from the sudden choice which lay before him. “Oh come on Spike, I was joking!” Ignis chuckled. Spike shook his head in disbelief, Ignis had lost any form of humility long ago.

“What’s this I hear about being able to fix everything?” Ignis turned to see Celestia walking through the main doors to the hall, followed by her sister and niece.

“Spike and I found Starswirl's spell book and the one spell that can fix it all, but we’ll need the Elements.” Ignis explained. The notion that anyone might have found Starswirl’s ancient secrets was astounding. Not even Luna nor Celestia had been able to find it. Celestia and Luna looked at each other and smiled.

Spike and Ignis began to engrave one of the many symbols upon the ground. “Celestia please give Applejack and the others their Elements. This would work easier with Twilight’s but there’s nopony that can fill that spot, so that’s why I’ll need Luna, Cadence, Shining, and your help to do this.” Celestia nodded in recognition and trotted over to the vault, in which the Elements were stored. She carefully stepped over the symbol in which had been etched, noticing full well what he was planning.

“That’s the time spell marking. How will going back for a few seconds fix things Ignis?” Celestia saw Ignis smirk. The stallion explained that the time spell Twilight used was an incomplete version. Starswirl believed that it was too powerful of a spell, and that somepony would abuse it to rewrite history in their favor. Leaving it as a broken short spell was the only way to fully ensure no damage could be done in that short of a time frame.

Ignis watched as each pony took their positions around the seal with himself stood in the center. He could smell the stench of curiosity fill the air. To his left he could see Applejack, Cadence, Fluttershy, and Pinkie all sharing a concerned look. To his right Rainbow Dash and Rarity lay dormant, simply glaring at him with malice intent. Luna and Celestia told in front of him, proud that he hadn’t given up hope like Shining had thought. Shining on the other hoof, slumped down behind him, seemed like a shell of his former self after what had happened between them, he seemed…broken.

“Are you positive that this’ll work Ignis?” Luna questioned, giving a concerned look.

“Yes with everyponies magic along with mine, as long as I focus on the exact time and place I should be able to fix everything that’s happened.” Ignis gave off a determined vibe, one which could give Rainbow and Rarity the confidence that he could do it.

“Ignis…” Shining finally spoke up, his eyes filled with tears while he locked eyes with Ignis. “Bring Twi'ly back to all of us ok.”
Ignis nodded. “I will Shining…I promise everypony I’ll fix this.” Ignis looked around and watched as each pony started to charge up their magic. The Elements, resonated with Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie providing immense power. The seal began to lift itself from the ground, the gaps filling with color and life. Shining and Cadence fired beams of hope and love towards the center of the seal, their power continuing the evolution. Finally Luna and Celestia added their immense magic into the fray and the seal began to float above the ground.

Finally, Ignis concentrated on the date and time he wished. Firing a stream of energy at the very center of the seal caused it to shatter, the lights continuing to shine.

“Keep it up!” The stallion yelled. The assortment of different colors began to envelope around the knight, forming a multi-colored orb. He knew exactly where and when he wanted to return to. Both Spike and himself figured this would most likely be a one way trip. With a brilliant flash of light and a pulse of magic, Ignis was gone. He was left to fix everything that had gone wrong. Ignis wasn’t the only one gone, Spike had managed to slip away from the group. On the way over Ignis had given him one last task to do once he left.

Spike walked down the crumbling stone path, towards the cemetery. The wind was hard and in force tonight, but still the dragon pushed on. Entering the graveyard he stared towards the center, where Twilight’s monument stood. Overburdened with emotion, he calmly opened a small bag in which Ignis passed him. He placed two rings on the monument and looked up at Twilight’s stone face.

“Wait for him Twilight. You’ll be together again soon...”

Author's Note

Again gotta give massive credit to my co-writer Parsley for putting up with me and putting in his own great work into this story. :)

Chapter 3

It was a peaceful day in Ponyville, the birds were chirping, the sun was shining, and the citizens were just getting up as the sun rose over the hills. The sound of wubbs could be heard coming from Octavia and Vinyl’s house, disturbing the families around them. The warm sun passed through the glass in the Ponyville library, basking its orange glow on the bookshelves and furniture. Twilight stirred when the orange rays of the rising sun hit her face. A low groan escaped Twilight, her eyes blinded by the sun, opening them right at the window next to the bed. Twilight covered her face rolling over; it was then that she realized that something was already amiss. The other spot on her bed, normally filled by her husband Ignis, was left empty. The sheets were ruffled and mangled, more than likely from Twilight during the night.

“Morning, Twilight.” A high pitched voice called to her from the doorway. It was the unmistakable voice of her number one assistant. Spike had gotten bigger in the time since she got back together with Ignis. Spike was now at least as tall as she was. He might’ve been getting bigger but he was still the same faithful assistant she had known. Spike's scales glimmered in the sunlight. The reflections caught Twilight by surprise while Spike yanked the covers off.

“Ugh good morning Spike.” Twilight groaned. Not the normal one to sleep in on a beautiful day like this. Her usual spontaneous and hurried nature had gone downhill about five months ago. Twilight managed to roll herself out of bed. Her belly swollen and hanging down from the rest of her body. She placed a hoof gently on her stomach and rubbed gently. Twilight looked around her room, the pony manikin that Ignis used to store his armor was blank. Spike could see the worry starting to build up on Twilight’s face, putting a claw on her shoulder to reassure her.

“I haven’t seen him Twilight, but I just got up a bit before you.” Spike then realized that his attempt to calm the lavender mare down had only served in producing more panic.

“Spike this is a big day." "You know what’s planned for today, right?” Twilight, using her magic levitated a calendar over in her paranoid and panicking state, shoved the calendar in Spike's face.

“Twilight, I know what’s happening today.” Spike said bluntly, pushing the calendar out of his face. “I’m sure Ignis has a good reason for not being home right now.” In truth, Spike wasn’t sure what would keep Ignis from coming home. Twilight pushed past Spike and was headed for the door going down stairs. Spike was right on her hooves, passing his room as they made it to the stairs and headed down. The Library, since Twilight and Ignis had gotten married, had changed greatly. It had been Celestia’s wedding gift to them. Using her magic, Celestia had added another level to the Library giving it a better living area and even gave Spike his own room. The library was still what you saw when you entered, except now there were more books stocked inside the shelves.

Twilight continued down the stairs into their living room, stopping just before she made it down the stairs. The living area wasn’t big but it was just the right size for a new couple, and it had room to add another bedroom if they wished. Twilight and Ignis had done just that. For the first year they used the spare room as a store room. Although once they decided to add one more to the family, it quickly became a family project. To the left of Twilight was their kitchen where Ignis would make some of his famous dinners. Ignis had even made Spike a rather large gem cake on his birthday. Twilight felt Spike bump into her from behind, nudging her down a stair. It was then that Twilight found Ignis. In the center of the living area was a large couch. One that would fit two ponies and a dragon easily. Lying on the couch was Ignis, still dressed in his guard armor. He was fast asleep on the couch, his mane, a messy pile of orange and yellow. Twilight stood there smiling gently at the sight before her. Twilight knew that Ignis slept on the couch so that he wouldn’t wake her when he got in bed. Twilight slowly walked up to Ignis, the sound of him softly snoring made her chuckle. Ignis was always thinking about her, especially now that Twilight was expecting their first foal.

Ignis groaned, rolling around on the couch. “Mmmm, Twilight.” Twilight chuckled, nuzzling against Ignis gently. Ignis stirred from his sleep seeing his wife standing over him with a warm and caring smile. “Morning Twilight.” Groaned Ignis, stretching out his hooves, giving Twilight a passionate kiss.

“Ignis you didn’t have to sleep on the couch. You could’ve just come to bed.” Twilight pursed her lips.

“I didn’t want to wake you. Besides you need your rest, especially since you’re eating for two.” Ignis smiled, placing a hoof on Twilight’s belly.

“Ignis, you’ve still got a few hours until we need to meet my friends at the train station. Go upstairs and lay down on the bed silly.”

“I’m not going to bed unless you’re coming with me.” Ignis bit at Twilight’s mane. Ignis, holding her mane in his mouth, gave her a provocative look as he did.

“Ignis, you naughty stallion! You know we can’t, we’ve got that lunch with everypony at Canterlot Castle today.” Said Twilight.

“But Twilight, we haven’t had any…ahem…’private time’ together in over a month.” Ignis grumbled. Ignis’ eyes looked to Twilight giving her the saddest look he could muster.

“Oh don’t give me that look Ignis.” Twilight stared at Ignis. Her stare, cutting into him and his resolve with almost the same strength as Fluttershy. Ignis grumbled, letting go of Twilight’s mane, he rolled over and huffed. Twilight pursed her lips, and then rolled her eyes. Ignis, Luna’s top knight was laying there…pouting of all things. Twilight kneeled, resting her head on Ignis’ neck and she nipped at his ear. “I promise Ignis, I’ll make it up to you. We’ll have a night to ourselves, kind of like an IOU.” Ignis rolled off the couch, his armor clinking together when he moved. Ignis looked at Twilight; pondering her statement he raised an eyebrow.

“Alright Twi, you win this one. But for this IOU I’m wanting to…” Ignis leaned in and whispered in Twilight’s ear. Ignis did this so Spike wouldn’t be able to hear and it was a good thing he did. Twilight’s face turned beet red. Twilight’s eyes widened a look of shock on her face. Twilight tried to object to Ignis’ suggestion, stuttering badly her hooves shuffling on the wood floor. “Oh Twi, I know all your secrets and kinkiness, and I plan to have as much fun with them as possible.” Ignis chuckled, walking past Spike who had a very confused look on his face. Twilight was too flustered to say anything. Luckily a familiar voice called to her from the library. Twilight headed downstairs, greeted by the smiling faces of Rarity and AppleJack. The two mares were waiting patiently, smiling as they saw Twilight coming down the stairs. AppleJack was only wearing a red bandanna around her neck. Rarity on the other hoof had on one of her fancy dresses. The dress itself was a bright blue with pale yellow trimming and pattern work. A pale yellow saddle sat on her back, the final accent to match the dress.

“Good morning Twilight. How are you and the little one doing today?”

“The foal’s doing fine Rarity. I should ask why you’re so overdressed for this lunch.” Twilight chuckled.
“Ya Rarity, why are ya so dressed up? The princesses said they didn’t want us to be all fancy, it’s only lunch.”

“At Canterlot Castle, AppleJack. I’m not going to present myself to the royalty like a backyard resident in outback town like you.” Rarity scoffed.

“Outback town!? Rarity this bandanna happens to be my mothers.” AppleJack growled, storming out of the Library.

“Rarity I’d suggest apologizing to AppleJack and then changing into something less fancy. What would happen if you got that dress dirty? Shining and Cadence will be there with my niece Lily. Remember what happened last time?” Twilight said in a stern voice. Rarity was drawn back to a year ago when she first met Lily. It was something very vivid; Rarity was wearing her new fashion dress a white blouse, which was just made the other day. The next thing she knew Lily smiled and vomited all over the dress ruining it. Rarity cringed at the thought and quickly ran out the door back to her boutique. Twilight was laughing the entire time, decided it was best to start getting ready for the lunch. Twilight got ready as quick as she could; she was wanting to give Ignis plenty of time to get ready too. Twilight had decided to wear the yellow dress that Rarity had fixed up for her. The dress had been given a little more room to accommodate Twilight’s growing belly, Twilight had her mane up in a ponytail just the way Ignis liked it.

The hours seemed to go by before she had to wake Ignis up. He’d come out of the tub dripping wet with a big grin on his face. Ignis ended up chasing Twilight around the bedroom before finishing getting ready. Ignis had on his guard jacket that he’d been given when he first joined Luna’s knights, though it had to be altered a few times over the years. It was a black and blue jacket that had Luna’s mark embroidered on the left side of the collar and her Lunar republic symbol on the right. The expectant couple left the library and made their way towards the train station. AppleJack and the rest of their friends were eagerly awaiting their arrival. Twilight hugged each one of her friends, Ignis giving the same to them as well. Ignis followed Twilight and the others listening to them clucking like a group of hens being corralled into a pen, and Ignis was the sheep dog. Ignis took his seat next to Twilight, before long both of them were bombarded with questions.

“Twilight, Twilight, Twilight! Are you going to tell your big brother today?...Huh, huh, huh?” Pinkie yelled. Her hooves were digging into the back of the chair, Ignis was sure that the pink mare could easily snap that in two if she was any more excited.

“Yes Pinkie, I do plan to tell Shining about our foal.” Twilight chuckled. “Besides I can’t wait. Any longer and I wouldn’t be able to hide it anymore. It’s only thanks to Rarity altering my dress for today that I’m able to keep it mostly hidden.” Twilight rubbed her belly. She was right, even with Rarity’s adjustments it still held a little tight to Twilight’s belly. Thankfully though it only made her seem like she’d put on a few pounds and wasn’t five months pregnant.

“Twilight, um…are you sure this is such a good idea?” Fluttershy chimed in quietly.

“Yeah Sugarcube, your big brother could steam about this for all we know.” AppleJack worried.

“Are you kidding AJ, I think Twilight’s got guts for doing this. I mean Shining didn’t even tell her he was getting married.” Rainbow looked at her friend and gave her a hoof bump. “You show him not to mess with you Twi.” Rainbow wanted nothing more than to stick it to Shining, especially after how Twilight freaked out when she first found out about the wedding.

“This is also part payback for Luna and Celestia.” Ignis chimed in. He remembered a few weeks before the two princesses had teamed up to prank the Midnight Guard captain. It sent chills up his spine just thinking about it. He was called into the throne room and saw both of the princesses standing there waiting for him to enter. Ignis had a lump in his throat, just yesterday he’d dumped syrup and white feathers on Luna turning her into a chicken. The resulting laughing fit that Ignis and the other guards were having was returned with Luna yelling at him in her royal Canterlot voice. Luna let Ignis know that she would make him regret doing that to her. Ignis had been dreading it, since it took Luna two days to get un-stuck.

Celestia stomped her hoof once Ignis was close enough to them. “You’ve over stepped your bounds in pranking this time Ignis!” Celestia was using the royal Canterlot voice, it was never head from her before and it made Ignis’ knees quake in fear. Ignis could see Luna in tears, still apparently upset about the prank.

“I’m sorry your majesty, but it was just a harmless…” Ignis was cut off by Celestia silencing him.

“As punishment you will be stripped of your rank and armor. You’re no longer a part of the guard. Furthermore I’m banishing you to the moon for a decade.” Celestia’s face was as stern as a rock, showing no emotion.

“Wait, what about Twilight!? She’s my wife you can’t just split us up like this.” Ignis was panicking. He didn’t want to be separated from the love of his life. She depended on him for making all of the money to live.

“Twilight is a very resourceful pony. I’m sure she’ll find a way to manage, she did just fine before you came along.” Celestia stared at Ignis. Her words cut into Ignis, like they were fatal wounds being dealt to him. Celestia charged her horn, Ignis objected, panicking with tears running down his cheeks. Celestia sent an orb of magic at Ignis. All Ignis could do was close his eyes and wait for the orb to hit him. Ignis opened one eye when nothing happened to see the orb floating above him. The orb then exploded, raining confetti down upon him. Ignis was stupefied, he wasn’t sure what was going on, first he was being removed from Equestria and the next minute had confetti in his mane.

Ignis grit his teeth at the thought of how badly they’d pranked him. Ignis was ready to spill this surprise to them today; it was in his mind the ultimate payback. The train finally stopped at the Canterlot station and let everypony off. The walk to the castle wasn’t long, but the trek up the stairs into the castle was taxing on Twilight. Even with Ignis letting Twilight lean on him she was still breathing heavily once they made it to the top. “You guys go on ahead. We’ll catch up once Twilight’s rested okay.” Ignis had Twilight lay down so that she could catch her breath. Ignis walked over to one of the guards and requested a glass of water for Twilight. Once the guard left he heard Twilight scream. Ignis turned around and the sight before his eyes was nothing but anger. Standing in front of Twilight was the one and only God of Chaos himself. “Discord!” Ignis yelled, storming over to his wife and the Dracquness. Ignis glared at Discord shooting daggers with his eyes, but like always it had no effect on Discord. The god of chaos had taken Twilight’s mane and made it into a large lollipop and was licking it and biting small chunks off.

“Oh come on Ignis this is one of my favorite flavors. Mhmm it’s so sweet yet sour, it just tickles me pink.” Discord laughed, upon the word pink his whole body changed to a bright pink. Twilight turned a deep red and demanded that Discord return her mane to its proper place. Discord disappeared and reappeared behind Ignis. “Ignis you’re far too high strung. Relax, have some fun and cause some chaos.” Discord snapped his fingers and in an instant Twilight and Ignis’ manes had changed places. Ignis growled in frustration, his horn glowing in its orange aura.

“Discord, that’s enough!” A blue mare, walked up to them her light and pale blue mane and tail offsetting her blue coat. Her red eyes glared at Discord, she was completely different towards Discord. Nothing like the heart with an arrow tattoo on her right foreleg would indicate. Ignis’ second in command Frost Shard. Her name and cutie mark, multiple shards of ice, weren’t just for show. Frost was known for being a cold hearted fighter on the battlefield and was the best ice magic user in all of Equestria. “Discord fix everything right now got it.” Discord objected but Frost held her ground. When it came to Discord, Frost was one of the few that could keep him in line. Her ice magic had the ability to keep him encased in ice, it was a rare ability but one of the reasons Luna had chosen her for the guard. Discord grumbled and snapped his fingers giving Twilight and Ignis their appropriate manes. “Thank you Discord. I know you like to have fun but not today okay, you can have your fun tomorrow since today is special.”

Discord appeared next to Twilight shrinking down to match her height. “Of course how could I forget that today you’re telling the princesses and your brother about this.” Discord placed his claw on Twilight’s swollen belly, rubbing gently. He might’ve been the god of chaos but he wasn’t cruel, it was quite the opposite. Discord had been tickled pink about the idea of seeing the foal, only so he could teach it to play funny jokes on Ignis and Twilight. “Well Twilight enjoy the moment today. Now if you’ll excuse me I’ve got to finish setting things up for lunch.” With a snap of his fingers Discord was gone again.

Twilight got up and walked through the castle with Ignis and Frost, making their way to the Dining Hall. Luckily for Twilight, her brother and sister-in-law weren’t there yet. It was a long train ride from the Crystal Empire. Twilight took her seat next to Fluttershy while Ignis went to talk to his fellow knights. Solar Flare was the first to approach Ignis and Frost, the pale yellow unicorn stallion as always his red and grey mane and tail were unkempt and long. The other knight with him was one of Ignis’ closest friends, Star Seeker. The black Pegasus was known for being very superstitious about a lot of things. To counteract his fear he wore a necklace with red beads on it constantly, everypony could pick him out of a crowd thanks to that necklace, well other than his gray and snow white mane and tail. Ignis was having fun chatting with his fellow knights, looking over at Twilight she was already talking with her friends. Twilight’s parents made their appearance in the dining hall greeting the expecting couple with a warm hug for both of them. It was on Cadence’s behalf that they be a part of the lunch for today, she was dying to see the look on Shining’s face when Twilight gave the news.

It was then that Cadence and Shining walked in with their daughter Lily, causing Twilight to make a B-line straight for the table. “Uncle Ignis, Aunt Twily!!” The little filly yelled running over to Ignis. Lily was picked up by Ignis and given a big hug. “I’ve missed you soooo much. How’s aunt Twily doing with the…” Ignis shushed the overly excited filly. Ignis set Lily down and watched her run over to Twilight getting her hug from her and kept poking at Twilight’s belly. Ignis was worried that Lily might blow the secret until Twilight managed to calm Lily down. Ignis received a hug from Cadence before taking her seat next to Twilight and Lily. His brother in law was one he always welcomed the most. They’d been rivals for most of their lives and to this day still were always trying to outdo each other in something. Even though they were rivals they were still the best of friends giving each other a high hoof when they were together. Cadence gave Twilight a hug making sure to whisper something in her ear, but she refused getting one from her brother. “Come on Twily don’t tell me you’re still mad at me for the whole Wedding thing? You’ve held that over me for years now.” Shining whined, looking to Cadence for support he was only met with a giggle from her. Shining huffed and took his seat next to Cadence, Shining kept peering over at his sister. Shining couldn’t put his hoof on it but something about Twilight seemed different, and this wasn’t the first time he noticed it either.

Luna and Celestia soon made their appearance as well, both of them sat at the end of the table as the lunch was brought in. There was plenty of food to make sandwiches, salads, tacos; you thought of it, it was there. They even had sweets from SugarCube Corner, something that Lily was ready to jump right into. This was a gathering like no other. The sparkle family and what they called their extended family sitting across the table. Lily was teasing Spike, getting him to chase her around the room much to Cadence and Twilight’s objection. Twilight grabbed Ignis’ collar and pulled him to her whispering violently to him. “You put one of those inside me! What are we gonna do?” The question had Ignis sweating all of a sudden. So far he’d handled every last bit of crazy perfectly but at this moment he was drawing a blank. Ignis panicked and did the only thing he could think of and gave Twilight an innocent kiss followed up by the cheesiest smile he could give her. “You’re lucky you’re so cute.” Twilight sneered, letting go of Ignis allowing Ignis to go back to eating his lunch. The talk and gossip went on for hours, Pinkie having fun with Lily and Spike. Rarity, dodging a few pastries thrown at her by Lily and Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash and AJ had gotten into a watermelon eating contest and both of them were at an even pace. Fluttershy was feeding Philamina some food with Celestia’s okay of course. Everypony else was talking with each other. Ignis looked to Twilight and gave a slight nod, receiving the same nod back Twilight tapped on her glass using a levitated spoon. Everypony looked to Twilight, seeing Ignis stand up with a big smile on his face. “Everypony Ignis and I have an announcement to make.”

“This is something we’ve been hiding for quite a while but…” Ignis gave a long pause letting Shining take a bite of his salad. “Twilight’s pregnant.” A gagging sound was made from Shining as he choked on his lettuce. Celestia and Luna both spit out the tea that they were drinking at the news soaking Rarity in the splash. Shining finally got the lettuce out, the scrap hitting Rarity right in the face eliciting a glare of anger at Shining. Both Ignis and Rainbow Dash hit the floor with that laughing hysterically, bringing themselves to tears quickly.

“Twily you’re pregnant!?”

“Yep, I was five months along starting today.” Twilight smiled. The look on everyone’s faces was priceless. Everypony that was in on it was either laughing or smiling. While Shining, Luna, and Celestia were all slack jawed and speechless. Celestia appeared instantly behind Twilight, embracing her in a warm hug.

“Twilight this is such wonderful news. But I must ask why did you wait so long to tell us and why did you hide something so special.” Celestia was quite confused when Twilight and Ignis started to laugh.

“Well I did it on one part to get back at Shining for not telling me that he was getting married until the day of. The second part was with Ignis to get you and Luna back for that prank that you played on him.” Celestia and the others were too happy to care about some silly payback or be mad for hiding this from them. Barrages of questions were sent to Twilight and Ignis from the three family members they’d tricked once Ignis had calmed down enough. Everything from if they needed any more space for the baby, to the big question, whether they knew if they were going to have a boy or girl. “Ignis and I both agreed to wait until our foal arrives to find out.” Twilight giggled. The day went on like any other day. Twilight’s foal and health was the main topic for most of the afternoon. Ignis poked fun at Shining most of the day at his reaction, each time Cadence abandoned his plea for backup. Time seemed to move quickly and before everyone knew it Celestia and Luna were being summoned back to the throne room. With that the party started to dismiss Twilight’s parents gave their kids a hug and a kiss before heading home. Cadence and Shining did the same, leaving with an exhausted Lily on Shining’s back. Twilight and Ignis took their leave next walking out with Frost, Star, and the rest of the gang before Frost and Star split off and headed home.

The train ride back to Ponyville was a quiet one. Most of the group was asleep on the train ride back, exhausted from all the fun, all except for Twilight and Fluttershy. They moved to the last car and were standing on the platform staring up at the clouds. With Twilight’s pregnancy something had recently come into her mind. “So Fluttershy, do you and Big Mac plan on having kids soon?”

“Oh…um…I don’t know Twilight…the thought just…well…scares me.” The yellow pegasus stuttered. Fluttershy and Big Mac had started dating around the same time, but had gotten married the year before Twilight and Ignis. Everyone was certain that Fluttershy and Mac would’ve had a foal by now. Twilight took Fluttershy’s hoof and placed it on her swollen belly. “Oh Twilight I shouldn’t I don’t want to…oh.” Fluttershy stopped mid-sentence, she could feel some movement from the baby. Fluttershy was so enamored by this moment she didn’t even feel Twilight mover her own hoof away. “Oh wow Twilight I…I can feel it moving Twilight.”

“You shouldn’t be afraid Fluttershy, having a foal is something magical and very special to be able to bring something into the world.” Twilight let out a yawn. Fluttershy took Twilight back in and they sat down and fell asleep for the last few hours of the ride back. Everypony gave each other a hug and went on their way home, Spike followed AppleJack so that he could see AppleBloom. Ignis opened the oak door to the Library for Twilight and followed her inside and up to their room. Ignis and Twilight laid down on their bed and Ignis started to close his eyes ready to take another nap. “Oh going to sleep already? We’ve got hours before Spike comes home, did you want to collect on that IOU?” Ignis’ ears perked up and he looked at Twilight with a grin on his face.

Author's Note

Credit goes to MellowCream from the MLP Forums for Proofreading/Editing

Yes finally a new chapter is up back to work on this lovely piece of work.